Graduate Certificate in Professional Writing for International Audiences

A four-course, non-degree program, this Certificate is designed for professionals who write for, or work with, an international population.

Given the ease of global communication (especially due to the Internet), the increasing dependence on English as an international link language, the expansion of corporate interests worldwide, and the rapid growth of international residents in metro Atlanta, this Certificate fulfills a vital communicative need in a variety of professional settings. Business professionals may incorporate insight gained from the Certificate into their international corporate documents by preparing them with an increased awareness of cultural and linguistic nuances of English varieties around the world. For example, a growing body of scholarship has documented how Asian English (e.g., Singaporean, Indian, and Malaysian) differs from Standard American English due to the cultural contexts of its users. An awareness of these differences will allow business professionals to avoid communicative breakdowns due to differences in culture and English usage. Similarly, educators (college, high school, corporate trainers) will benefit from this Certificate by understanding the language variety and rhetorical strategies used by writers from other countries whose use of English may differ from that of their U.S. counterparts. Educators who are aware of these differences can use this insight in classrooms, particularly in cases when international students work with American students on writing projects and other classroom activities. This Certificate will also benefit professionals working in non-profit organizations, government employees, and others who work with or write for a large population of non-native English speakers.

As the name implies, the Certificate will be writing-based, which distinguishes it from traditional Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) programs. The certificate is distinctive from TESOL programs because it does not focus on teaching English to non-native users. Rather the focus will be on how English users from different cultural and linguistic traditions can communicate more effectively in a variety of written media such as e-mail, Web pages, brochures, and formal documents. Consequently, there will also be an emphasis on the process of document creation that requires collaboration between native and non-native English speakers and the need for cultural and linguistic sensitivity to increase the effectiveness of the working relationship.

Application Process

Students interested in applying for the Graduate Certificate in Creative Writing will apply in the same manner with the same deadline as degree-seeking students, except they are not required to take the GRE.